When I'm Gone
Page 35

His fingertip brushed the underside of my left butt cheek, and I gasped, but I didn’t move. He was touching me. Barely.
“There’s a freckle right here. I love this freckle. Best fucking freckle in the world,” he said in a thick, deep voice.
Then I heard him move, and I glanced back to see him going down on his knees. I started to turn, and his hands grabbed my waist and held me still.
“Please, Reese. Don’t. Not yet,” he begged. So I stayed still.
His warm breath hovered over my skin, and I trembled. Knowing his face was so close to any part of me was exciting, but this was almost too much. Then his lips grazed the same spot he’d touched, and I released a strangled cry from the shock and pleasure.
“Just had to kiss it,” he said, pressing his lips against that spot again. Then his hands slid up over my bottom, and he squeezed gently. “Swear, Reese, this ass is perfection,” he said in a reverent tone. “So fucking glad you didn’t wear this swimsuit in front of other men tonight. This is my ass. I don’t want anyone else seeing this juicy little piece of heaven.”
I closed my eyes tightly. Was I really letting him kneel behind me and play with my bottom? My heart was racing, and the fever in my body was at an all-time high.
Mase moved some of the swimsuit covering my butt over until more of my cheek was bared and pressed another kiss to me. Oh, God, he was kissing my bottom.
“You even smell good down here. I can smell how this excites you. It mixes well with that sweet cream cinnamon smell that clings to you.”
I really needed something to hold on to before I melted into a puddle. My knees buckled a little, and Mase’s hands tightened on my waist as he stood back up behind me. He didn’t cover my bared cheek back up, and he slid his body up against mine.
He kissed my shoulder, then brushed my hair back off my neck and ran his nose over the curve of my ear. “I don’t want to do anything you aren’t ready for. But I want to touch you. That’s all. Nothing more. Are you ready for that? If not, it’s OK. I can just look.” It sounded like that last part was ripped from him unwillingly.
All those beautiful women throwing themselves at him, and he wanted me. He chose me. I could let him touch me some. I wasn’t panicked yet, and right now, all I could think about was Mase and how he felt. How he made me feel. “Yes,” I said, sounding as if I was completely out of breath.
He ran a finger down my neck and wrapped a strand of hair around his finger. “Thank you. For trusting me. You don’t have to, and knowing that you like my touch is the most fucking beautiful thing anyone’s ever given me.”
He didn’t start groping at my body. Instead, we stood there, as he played with my hair and continued running his nose and lips over my neck and ear. I slowly leaned back into him as my body relaxed under his gentle caress.
“Your hair is like playing with silk,” he whispered. “And your skin.” He ran a hand down my bare arm and slid that same hand over the butt cheek he had left exposed. “I’ve decided I’m obsessed with silk,” he added.
I started to squirm when his hand slid back up my body, circling around to the front and stopping on my stomach. “Turn around, and let me see you,” he said, stepping back from me.
I was breathing heavily, and I knew he could see it. But facing him made it more real. I would be able to see him as he looked at me.
His gaze ran down my body slowly, then back up again. There was a worshipful look on his face that made me feel cherished. Important. Protected.
Those were three things I had never felt.
I would not cry.
He stepped closer and placed his fingertips on my stomach, tracing my belly button. Then both hands were on me, as he moved them up slowly until he grazed the bottoms of my breasts. With one finger, he traced my cleavage and dipped into the crevice between my breasts. “I want these bare and in my hands,” he said, as he lifted his eyes to meet mine in a silent request.
I inhaled sharply but not from fear. I wanted that, too. The areas around my nipples were in pain, they ached so badly. “OK,” I said, knowing he wouldn’t do anything until I said he could.
He slid his arms around me and untied the halter top and the back of my suit. It fell away and drifted to the floor, and my boobs bounced free.
“Fuck, those are amazing,” he breathed, as his hands cupped them and his thumb played with my nipples. “Can I taste them?” He sounded like he was begging again.
“Yes,” I said breathily, reaching out to grab his arms in case my knees completely gave out.
Mase growled and lowered his head. Then his tongue flicked at my right breast. He made a pleased sound in his chest before he pulled an entire nipple into his mouth and sucked on it.
My legs went weak, and I cried out as pleasure rocketed through my body.
Mase picked me up before I collapsed on the floor and carried me over to the sofa, sinking down with me firmly in his lap. He kissed my lips as I panted, still reeling from his mouth on my chest.
One of his hands still kneaded my breasts, and I wanted his mouth there again. “Can I taste them again?”
I nodded, wanting to shove his head back down to my breasts and never let him up.
Mase’s warm mouth pulled the other nipple into his mouth, and I cried out again as my hands fisted in his hair. I worried that I might hurt him, but I had to hold on to something. His hands held my breasts as he kissed and even nibbled on them. I whimpered and cried out his name as I held his head against me. I wanted this to last forever.